China’s new five-year plan to reduce its economic carbon emissions banks on the country’s booming renewable energy sector to limit coal use and greenhouse gases. Beijing outlined annual targets to replace 30 million metric tons of coal with renewable energy in five years, with China scaling its wind and solar power capacity. but did not impose limits on coal consumption. However, the new plan did not set a goal for total emissions to head lower before 2030 or set limits on coal consumption. Analysts have criticised this new plan as insufficient to enable the country to meet its NDC target of reducing emissions by 65% from 2005 to 2030, with some speculating that it could result in a rise in emissions by 3-6%. Although China has fallen short of previous climate targets, China’s rapid expansion of renewable energy could help reduce emissions.
